Lovely
by bareillesara
Summary: A boy. A girl. An enemy. A singing contest. A necklace. An old lover. 1,000 dollars. Haunting pasts. Broken hearts.


**Amber-Rose's POV**

 _I look at artists like Colbie Caillat and Sara Bareilles with such admiration. They have the courage to go out in front of bug crowds and sing their pretty little hearts out. I wish I was like that, but I doubt I'll ever be._ _I'm just scared of rejection, that's all. I'm scared that no one will accept and love my voice for how it is, no auto tune or nothing. I'm scared they won't accept my voice at all. That's why I keep to myself about such a topic. To everyone who isn't me, I can't sing for my life._

I snapped out of my thoughts once the sound of hands clapping filled my ears. I looked up at the mini stage in the middle of the restaurant to see Olivia taking a bow. I guess I got so caught up in my thoughts that I missed her karaoke performance.

What would it matter, though? The girl performs every Friday for Karaoke Night and never ceases to amaze the people. She's like the Ariana Grande of the Town, no matter what she sings, people eat it up.

I put on a fake smile and clapped along with everyone else just to blend in.

"Honestly," Julie started, "I feel like she is just too overrated. There are way better singers out there than her."

"Careful what you say about Ariana Grande, there might be some die hard fans nearby," I teased before popping a fry into my mouth.

She looked at me confused.

"What? No, I'm talking about Olivia."

"Oh," I blushed in embarrassment and took a sip of my drink.

Julie just laughed and shook her head, "I guess you could call her Grande, though."

 _Great minds think alike._

"Did you guys hear about the state singing competition coming up?" Priscilla spoke up excitedly.

"Yeah! Spoiler alert, I'm getting us tickets for the show," Julie smirked as she playfully flipped her hair.

My eyes widened a bit.

"No way, you don't have to do that! You shouldn't have to pay for all three of us, that's too much."

Priscilla nodded in agreement.

"Guys, guys, relax! I got it covered, don't worry. All my extra shifts here paid off. People have been getting really generous with their tips lately, I don't know why," Julie said with her eyebrows furrowed.

"Two reasons," Priscilla said, "you're either really good at waitressing-"

"Or you're just super hot," I interrupted her chuckling.

They both joined in on the laughter and Julie threw a napkin at me before sticking her tongue out.

"Aye, Graham Cracker!" a voice behind me called out.

 _Drew_.

I smiled and turned around to see him and Justin walking up to our booth. I scooted down some so he could sit beside me in the one extra space while Justin pulled up a chair.

His eyes met mine and out came that dashing smile, causing me to blush lightly and quickly bring my attention to my suddenly really interesting lap.

I sort of kept to myself while the others got into a conversation about the singing competition and who they think has a chance of winning. Even though Justin was giving them his attention, I could still see him look at me occasionally from the corner of my eye.

I smiled softly to myself and kept eating my fries. I was so zoned out that I didn't even realize I finished my plate until I brought my hand up to my mouth and bit down on my finger instead of a fry.

I guess Justin saw me because he let out a laugh and threw his head back.

 _That laugh, though._

"What's got you so distracted, Missy?" Drew asked as he ruffled my hair.

I playfully groaned at him before straightening up my hair.

"Nothing, nothing just...thinking about-"

"Justin, hey!" A girl called out before I could finish my sentence.

I glanced at Julie and Priscilla to see them roll their eyes at Olivia.

 _Yep, these are my girls._

"Liv...Hey?" Justin responded a bit unsure. He never really seemed all that comfortable around her, and I don't blame her. She has a tendency to get a little too close for comfort.

"I just wanted to let you know that daddy got me a spit in the singing competition coming up," she spoke while running her fingertips down his arm.

 _Ya nasty._

"Got you a spot?" Julie said, the annoyance laced into her words.

"You didn't actually audition?" Priscilla asked.

 _Of course she didn't._

"Oh please, I'm the last person in this town who needs to audition for a SINGING competition," she scoffed.

 _Knew it._

I clenched my jaw and looked away, not wanting to see her all up on Justin any longer. Ugh, just push her off already!

"You'll be there in the front row cheering me on when the time comes, right Justy?" she asked sweetly, pouting her lip.

Where's a barf bag when you need one?

I could tell the others felt just as weirded out as me, Justin most of all.

"Umm...y-yeah, sure! Totally." he responded, glancing at me for a split second before looking back at her.

 _What?_

"Great!" Olivia exclaimed.

"Later, Priscilla, Julie, Drew...and Rose," she finished off with a cold stare in my direction before strutting off.

Priscilla grabbed a napkin and used it to brush off Justin's arm.

"God knows where those hands have been, ugh!" she said in disgust.

We all laughed at her words and eased into a conversation once again.


End file.
